;,4^- 





'fc^^'jiiili^ifi. 





CHAPTER II 



A Stream and a Garden 



It may be fancy, of course, for memory that 



gilds the past has a habit of playing these 



tricks ; but I never can bring myself to 



believe that there is another so perfect a 



trout-stream as that which flowed by the 



old manor-house, a mile or so from the once 



important but, now that agriculture has 



depreciated, intensely sleepy and slow little 



town of N. in Berkshire. The manor-house 



stands not quite alone ; a tiny hamlet clusters 



around it. There is still the blacksmith's 



forge, no doubt, with its splendid ruddiness 



by night ; and still, no doubt, the village shop 



where you may buy your boots, your candles, 



your household utensils, your stationery — in 



15 



